


Wings Over Coruscant

by KaijuSplotch



Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: A bit of suicidal thoughts?, Chapter 2: Storms on the Horizon, Chapter 3: Downburst, F/M, Fox deserves a break, Gen, Grizzer is good dog, I have no idea what I'm doing, I suck at fighting scenes, I'd say Guardian Angel in the end?, Sheeve Palpatine is an asshole, This is what happens with plot bunnies, Winged Commander Clones AU!, and the shit is only just beginning to build up, and unable to be ignored, angst maybe?, brothers being brothers, i have too many fandoms and not enough time, i'll update tags w/chapters, i'm on new shit now, they come back to me fatter and bigger, yay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-15 00:28:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29550711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KaijuSplotch/pseuds/KaijuSplotch
Summary: The city-planet is no place to cage a winged clone.
Relationships: Riyo Chuchi/CC-1010 | Fox
Comments: 11
Kudos: 44





	1. The Wind of The Senate

**Author's Note:**

> This all started with the mental image of Fox standing on the dome of the senate with wide beautiful red wings. From there it's just evolved. Expect some Foxiyo. Expect some Sith shit. Expect maybe a way to make things all better. And yes, expect brothers to be brothers and Fox to have some goddamned support structures!

The cold night air was whipping around Fox as he stood at the highest point he could get on the dome of the senate building. It was as close as he could ever get to the urges he had to just leap off the edge. Not that he was contemplating suicide; no he was yearning to fly.

He carefully snapped open the latches on his chest armor and pulled it over his head, placing the plastoid chest-piece by his feet. It took a bit of uncomfortable maneuvering of cramped muscles before he could finally stretch out a pair of crimson wings behind him. Twelve feet from wing tip to wing tip spread wide and caught the air currents that stormed around the dome. 

Fox smiled as he felt his body lift every so slightly as he gently twisted and moved his wings through several positions. It had taken him months after Geonosis to finally let his wings taste the air again, even if he would never be allowed to fly on Coruscant. While the Kaminoans had no qualms about giving all of the first wave CC’s wings; they were an advantage to a commander on the field to be able to fly overhead, it would simply mark Fox as ‘other’ even more than he already was. 

He had to beat back the nasty ball of jealousy that he had for his vod on the front lines. His batchmates and fellow commanders were able to allow their wings to be fully in view at any time, able to use them to gain advantage in the field. It pissed him off to no end that he was stuck on the city-planet, bowing to the whims and wants of spoiled, and more often brutish, senators. 

The Marshal-Commander shook his head and with a sad sigh carefully folded up his wings. His patrol was over, and it was time to return to the ground which caged him. He carefully adjusted the sling in the back of his armor over his wings, shifting his wings slightly as he walked off the platform and down the secure walkway back into the building. He was snapping his armor shut by the time he appeared back in the camera feed. 

“Senate building is all clear,” Fox said into his comm. “I’m on my way back.” 

“Copy that, Commander.” Thorn’s voice was crisp and professional in his ears, it gave Fox a small bit of relief. 

He was about to turn to one of the service elevators when he heard footsteps hurrying toward the main elevator. Fox tensed; hand going to his blaster before he heard the faint chimes of metal, and spotted a familiar Pantoran senator rounding a corner. He sighed and dropped his hand. 

“Senator Chuchi, I thought you left an hour ago.” He was not scolding her, but perhaps firmly reminding her of the promise she made when he spotted her in her office on his way up. 

“Commander Fox! Oh I, yes. I meant to, I really did. I just got wrapped up in finishing some things and just noticed the time.” She smiled at him and laughed nervously. “I promise, I'll be out before you get to the barracks.” 

Fox raised an eyebrow; glad his helmet hid the incredulous look, at her polite apology. “Not if you take the main elevator. It will take you three minutes to arrive at the garage and no doubt will be stopped by the blue guard stationed there for questioning.” The senate officers had been harassing more and more of the new Senators; making Fox’s stomach twist with disgust. 

“Oh...I suppose you are right. You do have longer legs than I do as well.” Ri-Senator Chuchi smiled again although it didn’t reach her eyes. “I hope I haven’t caused too much of a bother for you.” 

The elevator in front of him chimed pleasantly and he smiled. “Of course, if you were to take this elevator, with me, you would arrive at the garage and I would be escorting you and they would have no need to question or delay you any farther.” He tilted his head, smiling and held his hand out to stop the elevator from closing. 

“Oh...oh! Well yes. That would make sense.” She stepped into the elevator with Fox and smiled. “Thank you.” 

Fox nodded and entered with her, letting the doors close. “You’re welcome, Senator.” He said, standing at parade rest as the elevator traveled down. 

“Were you outside? Looks like you have a feather stuck to your pauldron.” Chuchi’s voice made Fox stiffen before he glanced over and saw a lone red downy feather caught under his pauldron. It was a shoulder coverlet moult, almost seven inches long. How had he missed that? And how many more had blown away in the wind? 

“Ah, yes. I was checking the dome walkways. Must have been a stray bird feather caught on the wind.” He grabbed it off; glaring through his visor at the offending plumage. 

“It’s quite beautiful. Would you mind if I had it?” 

His eyes trailed down to Riyo’s own bright gold ones and he found he couldn’t come up with a reason to deny her request that would be acceptable. He smiled and offered it to her. “Of course. I was just going to throw it away.” 

“Thank you. I used to collect Nuna bird feathers back home. I would make them into quills; not very good ones but,” Riyo smiled and gently ran her finger along the edge. “I’ve never been able to get rid of my fascination with the old ink and quill writing on flimsi.” 

“Sounds like a reasonable way to recycle them.” Fox felt his cheeks begin to hurt from smiling at her, even if his voice was polite and even. 

“Especially for one this beautiful, I think I’ll give it another go.” She beamed at him, and Fox swore that she could have outshone the sun. 

The elevator stopped and the doors opened to the garage, giving Fox no more time to dwell on the feelings that bubbled in his chest. “And here we are,” he said instead bowing his head and stepping out while offering his arm to Ri-Senator Chuchi. 

“Thank you for the escort, Commander.” 

“Not a problem at all, Senator. Next time, do try to set an alarm for yourself so you don’t spend all night working. Your people need you to be well rested.” Fox pointedly ignored the two senate guards near the main door to the garage, feeling their eyes on him as he walked with the senator. 

“I’ll do that, Fox. Have a pleasant evening!” 

Fox smiled and waited a polite distance as she entered her speeder and left the garage. He turned on his heel and marched to the door which led to the barracks. 

“Knew that one was a clone-fucker,” one of the blue’s hissed, loud enough for Fox’s audio to pick up. 

“Between her and Amidala I'm surprised they haven’t gotten knocked up.” 

Fox grit his teeth and turned his head toward the blues. “Speaking ill of the senators only reflects poorly on yourselves. At least my men and I do our jobs to protect the senate and senators.” 

“Oh? Is that so? The only reason you’re still here is because of the war. The moment the Seps are wiped out, you’ll be on your way to CoCo town to work at the foundries where all the good flesh-droids go.” Their laughter was cold and vicious and Fox held back the urge to punch them in their jaw. 

It would do him no good to get into a fight. There would be no one to defend his men; his vod; or to look out for Chuchi or Amidala or the few other senators who treated them as living beings. Oh but little gods he wanted to drag their asses up to the top of the dome and drop them onto the pavement. 

Instead, Fox just pulled up their identification on his HUD and began forming a firm letter to the Chancellor about their behavior; knowing it will no doubt be ignored. He turned and left the garage, muscles aching and painful in his back. He needed out of his armor, and maybe a long drawn out spar with a training droid.


	2. Storm on the Horizon

“Hound...please remove Grizzer from my office,” Fox said into his wrist comm as he stared at the massiff.

Grizzer simply snorted and opened their large maw, tongue rolling out as they sniffed around the office. Fox looked down into his mug of caf and knew he would need something stronger. 

“Sorry, sir! On my way!” Hound’s voice cut through Fox’s thoughts. 

If he were completely honest with himself, Fox would have admitted that having the massiff around wasn’t too bad. They didn’t slobber as much as some of the other creatures that he had seen smuggled into the barracks, nor did they leave unjustly ‘gifts’ like tookas. Instead, Grizzer was just far too interested in sniffing out whatever was in Fox’s office. 

“Oi, hey. Hey, hey hey! No drop that.” Fox immediately reached forward as Grizzer got a hold of the trash bin and started rooting around. Of course his morning could only be worse when the dumb massive knocked over the bin and began eating his molted feathers! 

“Dank Ferrik!” Fox wrapped his arms around Grizzer and lifted the massiff up and away from the pile of shed feathers on the floor. “Spit it out! Spit it!” 

“Grizzer! _Ba’slanar_!” Grizzer immediately spit out the feathers and wiggled out from Fox’s grip, running to Hound and sitting at his feet. 

“Thank you, Hound.” Fox sighed and looked at the mess of sopping wet feathers. 

“Sorry again, sir. Grizzer’s getting all sorts of antsy lately.” Hound reached down and patted the massiff while smiling. “Maybe I should take him out on a walk again.” 

“Please do. Or just let one of the shinies take him.” Fox sighed and carefully squatted down to take care of the feathers. 

“I can take those to the incinerator for you, sir.” Hound said kneeling down to help. “Maybe I can let Switchboard know no visitors today? It can’t be comfortable with your breastplate all day.” 

Fox frowned and felt his back muscles pull again as he nodded. “I think,” he began. “I think I’ll take you up on that offer, sergeant. I’ll be in my armor all day tomorrow between escorting senators to meetings with the Chancellor and Senate duty.” He looked at the ARF sergeant and smiled. “Thank you.” 

Hound grinned brightly. “You’re welcome, Commander. You gotta take care of all parts of you, y’know?” 

Fox nodded, the words the same as the ones his batchmates would chide him with. He stood, gathering up the last bits of feathers and trash before Hound grabbed them. 

“I’ll keep Grizzer on a tighter leash. Make sure he doesn’t bother you.” 

“Dismissed, Sergeant.” Fox returned Hound’s salute and relaxed when the door to his office shut. He didn’t waste any time unlatching his breastplate and tossing it on top of his filing cabinet 

His office was nowhere near large enough for him to fully unfurl his wings and give them a good work out, but it was enough to stretch rarely used muscles as well as shake out the last remaining feathers of his molt. It would also make filling out the paperwork that had piled up much more comfortable. 

Leaning forward as he sat, Fox let his wings stretch out, then up, then gently around his small desk to rest on the floor. Already he felt so much better. Now if only he could get through the paperwork with as little frustration as possible. Taking a deep breath in through his nose, Fox reached for his still-hot caf, and began his work. 

~*~*~*~*~ 

“Fox, you’ve been in there for eight hours!” Thorn’s voice cut through the haze that Fox had put himself in, startling him and causing him to flair his wings painfully. 

“Shit…!” he hissed and tried to carefully pull his wings back into a proper position, resting behind his shoulders. “Thank you for the observation, Thorn.” Fox glared as the door opened not only to Thorn but to Thire as well. He pinched the bridge of his nose and tried not to growl. 

“You need a break. Go on a patrol or something. The Senate isn’t in session so the dome won’t have any cameras pointed in that direction.” Thire said as he reached over and snatched the stylus from Fox’s hands. 

“Go get some wind in your feathers, or don’t and I’ll comm Wolffe. Or Maybe Cody this time. What do you think?” 

Fox wanted to punch Thorn, he really did. “Fine. I’ll do a patrol. I don’t need Wolffe or any of my other batchmates chewing my ear off. In exchange, though.” Fox picked up the datapad he was working with and shoved it into Thorn’s chest. “You have to finish this.” 

He watched their faces with only a small amount of justified arrogance as Thorn and Thire both shuffled their feet. 

“Of course, Sir.” Thorn was quick to grab the stylus from Thire and grin. Damn him. “You go on a patrol, and we’ll take care of this for you.” 

Fox sighed and rubbed his face, grabbing his breastplate from the cabinet. He should be pissed off at being shoved out of his office by the two; but he couldn’t work up the energy. He would have enough problems with the senate job tomorrow. “I’ll be back to finish up whatever you two don’t get done. Should leave you plenty of time to touch up your roots, Thorn.” Armor snapped closed over his wings, Fox gave the blond clone’s shoulder a pat. 

“Of course, sir.” The _mir’sheb_ had the gall to still grin at that. 

Fox didn’t know what he would do without them. Pulling his helmet on, he walked toward the senate grounds. He brought up his chrono in his helmet and planned out his patrol route. Usually he would have it all planned hours in advance; but brothers were brothers; and he needed a break for once. It would be too suspicious for him to start top-down, especially if he wanted to exercise his wings which could take up to five minutes; so bottom-top it was. 

The sun was creeping beyond the skyscrapers, casting the Senate district into long shadows and golden light. It was beautiful, and not just because it reminded him of a senator who somehow had managed to steal a piece of his heart. Fox was determined to get to the dome before the sun fully set, it would be a gorgeous sunset. 

Thankfully the first few floors were so mundanely empty that they sped by with nothing to alert Fox of anything out of place. Exiting the elevator as it stopped at the floor of the Inner planets, Fox immediately sensed something off. There was an individual he hadn’t seen before wandering near the intersection of the hallway. He walked over, attempting to be as non-threatening as possible while still holding onto the air of ‘do not fuck with me’. 

“Is there something you’re searching for, sir?” 

They were human, although there were strange markings on their forehead; like tattoos, as the man turned and smiled at Fox. The smile didn’t help the unease in Fox’s stomach. 

“Ah, yes. I am searching for the Pantoran Senator’s office,” he said with a polite bow of his head. 

“I’m afraid you’re on the Inner planet floor. Do you have an appointment with the Senator?” Fox didn’t know how in the Corillian Hells security let this man in, or if they had even given him clearance to be without an escort. Sithspit he hated the Blues. 

“Oh, no, I just have a personal message to deliver!” The man motioned to the flimsi envelope that had been tucked under his arm. “I’m just a courier.” 

Fox quickly checked the registrations on his HUD, finding that the man was indeed a courier, although there wasn’t a scheduled delivery on his list. “I will take the envelope to her. There’s no need to be delivering on your break.” His voice was firm as he held out his hand. This man would go nowhere near Senator Chuchi. 

The man’s eyes were wide and there was a slight tremor there. He had been hired to deliver it personally, possibly illegally. Fox was even more determined to get that envelope away from him. “I...am not sure I can do that,” 

“You will. It’s my duty as security for the Senate to ensure the safety of the Senators.” Fox walked closer and towered as much as he could over the shorter man. “Please hand over the envelope.” His other hand moved to rest on the hand of his DC-17. 

The man wilted and he quickly handed over the envelope. “Sorry sir, I’ll be on my way.” Envelope in Fox’s hand the man bolted to the main elevator and pressed the down button. Fox didn’t look away from the man until the doors to the elevator closed. 

“I need eyes on a human male, two inverted arches on their forehead, dark skinned, five-six, they’re in the main elevator, it should be heading down.” Fox ordered into his comm. 

“Copy that, Commander.” The voice ID in his HUD registered the speaker as Ripcord. 

“Make sure he leaves, tail him if necessary. He had an envelope to deliver personally to Senator Chuchi and he wasn’t on shift according to the records.” Fox frowned and moved to the service elevator. “I’m moving to a secure room to investigate the package.” So much for a quick patrol and dome visit. 

Fox walked swiftly to the closest safe room, closing the door behind him and carefully opened the package on the table. His scans revealed no powder, no abnormal chemical signatures, and no bodily fluids. He felt his anxiety ease and quickly closed the envelope. While he had no problem opening a package to inspect it for dangers; Fox was not one to read anything without the recipient present. After all, cultural nuances were not part of education on Kamino. 

The Marshall-Commander hurried to the upper floors, quickly reading the chat updates on the courier who was being tailed by his men. So far, the tails were keeping an eye on the human, hoping to find out who it was who paid him off. If it was a threat, then Fox would dedicate himself to watching over Ri-Senator Chuchi tomorrow himself. 

Fox knocked on the door to the Pantoran senatorial office and took a deep, calming breath. He hoped he had made a mistake; even if it would cause him to be demeaned later by the Chancellor in his disturbing grandfatherly way. He wanted Chuchi to be safe. 

The door opened to one of Senator Chuchi’s aides, an older Pantoran woman with a kind smile that hid her fierce protectiveness of the young senator. Fox had seen and heard her give lectures that he was sure would make even the Chancellor wilt and apologize for any of his misdeeds 

“Commander Fox, what a pleasant surprise, please come in.” The woman smiled and ushered him inside. Apparently Fox had earned her respect for something; he wasn’t sure what it was. 

“Commander Fox!” Riyo smiled as she stood from behind her desk. “To what do I owe the visit?” 

There was a red feather quill perched on a hover-stand that drew his attention. It was his feather, beautifully turned into a metal nib quill. His heart and stomach fluttered uncomfortably before he drew his attention away from it. 

“Unfortunately it may not be as pleasant a visit as expected. I intercepted a courier attempting to deliver this to you. I’ve already inspected it and there is nothing harmful inside outside of a letter. It’s written, I assume, in Pantoran.” Fox said with a frown in his voice, offering the envelope to Riyo. 

“Oh,” Riyo whispered, putting on a pair of gloves; thank the gods and goddesses she read the manuals on safety regulations; taking the envelope and walking back to her desk. 

“There’s no return address on it either. That is worrisome,” the aide, Kida, said as she walked over. 

“That was my thoughts as well,” Fox agreed, watching as Riyo opened the envelope and pulled out the single sheet of flimsi. His shoulders and wings stiffened as he saw her expression turn steely; barely hiding the fear in her eyes. 

“It’s...a threat. They’re threatening my continued involvement with Senator Amidala’s committee on the war.” Riyo sat down heavily in her chair. 

“I’ll increase security ASAP, Madam Senator, for both you and your aide.” Fox’s mind immediately began to form lists of possible enemies and schedules of who to put on protection detail. All thoughts of his break were gone; his duty to the republic outweighed any discomfort of the sling in his armor. He already began sending out alerts to his commanders. 

“They won’t stop me,” Riyo said firmly, breaking Fox from his thoughts. “I’m not going to back down from some threats. This war has gone on long enough and has put too much pressure on the innocent people on every planet the Separatists and GAR meet on.” 

He had always heard that Riyo was a passionate speaker. Although he never heard her speak on the floor, the Corrie’s stationed on Senate duty spoke highly of her. To hear her passion in person paled in comparison to their observations. 

“Ma’am, I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Fox stepped forward politely. “As it is, I’ll be stationing guards at your office doors and having a personal security detail stationed with you at all times. For the remainder of the day, I’ll be staying with you and your assistant.” 

Fox caught the look of shock on Riyo’s face before she was able to school her expression. He smiled at that; although it was bitter in a way. To think that she thought he - the corries - would abandon her to other senate guards. 

“Thank you, Commander. You Corrie boys always look out for the Senators, it’s good to have you here.” Kida nodded to him. 

“If there’s anything else we need to do, Fox, please let us know.” 

Fox nodded again to Riyo. “For now, I’ve notified my men to begin preparations for increased security tomorrow around members of the committee you mentioned. I have two men on their way to take the letter and begin analyzing it for any additional clues as to who sent it.” He took the envelope carefully putting the letter; block writing; difficult to track to an individual by handwriting; back into it. “Commander Thire will escort you two to the senatorial apartments this evening at the garage.” 

“Thank you, Fox.” Riyo reached over and put a hand gently upon his vambrace. “Tomorrow will be busy enough with meetings, I hope you will be able to get some rest.” 

“I’ll be fine, Senator. Most of the changes to the security detail will be minor enough to take care of. I’ll personally escort you to the landing pad in the afternoon after your meeting with the Chancellor.” Fox gently rested his hand over her’s. “For now, I’ll leave you to your work. I’ll be just by the door.” The two women bowed their heads in thanks as Fox moved to stand by the door, tapping into the hallway camera just outside the door with his HUD. The rest of the day would drag on; but he would not leave Riyo and Kida alone. 

~*~*~*~*~ 

“Take care of them, Thire,” Fox said over the internal comms as he handed over protection duty to his vod. 

“Don’t worry so much. Thorn and I got the paperwork done. Rest up and get out of that armor. We all need you tomorrow.” Thire’s voice was laced with worry as well as determination. No harm would come to the Senator and her aide under his watch. 

Fox turned to Riyo and Kida, bowing stiffly; glad his helmet hid the grimace as his wings pulled uncomfortably. “I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon at the Chancellor’s chambers. If you need anything at all, Commander Thire will be there and I’ll be a comm away.” 

“Thank you again, Commander Fox.” Riyo smiled. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Fox waited until the speeder left the garage to turn to the barracks. Something uneasy boiled in his stomach, and for the first time Fox dreaded seeing Riyo again. He had a horrible feeling about it.


	3. Downburst

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize that I SUCK at fight scenes! Anyway, I'm still feeling my way through this idea, updates may become slower! But never fear! i have other fics I have better planned out that I'm writing alongside this, feel free to check them out!

Sleep was not on Fox’s list of things that night. The boiling and pull in his stomach that set off all of his training that something was wrong wouldn’t let him. Fox had not survived Geonosis and the multitude of horrors there and on Coruscant by ignoring his training. While he would need to be rested; something told the Marshall-Commander that he needed to be in top shape; every part of him; for tomorrow. 

The barrak’s training rooms were barely acceptable for training in anything other than hand to hand and sparring, but it would have to do. Fox wasn’t good at hovering, not like Bly who could - and had - hovered over a table because he didn’t feel like standing. He couldn’t even soar for very long like Wolffe and Cody could on barely any wind. And he sure as hell couldn’t bash a droid’s face with a bone-spurred muscle bound wing like Ponds. Fox’s wings were built for one thing; speed, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t strengthen them. 

Fox grabbed the bar over head and took his weight off his legs; wings wide. Breathing steadily through his nose, he began the exercises that his batch had created to help strengthen the additional muscles of their backs and chests. Wing-ups, Cody had called them when they were younger, and it fit. Using powerful downstrokes of his wings instead of his arms to pull himself up over the bar and then gently back down was loosening up tense muscles and building the ache of a work-out that was not as good as an hours long flight; but it would be enough. 

The training room had no room for true flight, although a tight spiral to the top of the twenty foot tall room would have to be enough. He could do tight turns and fierce dives better than his brothers; and he was ranked as one of the fastest dives on Kamino during training. Taking a leap with a powerful downstroke, Fox was in the air and began to spiral tightly up to the top of the room; where a small target was stuck in the middle of the ceiling, perfect for a quick fly by touch before he began to spiral down again, controlling his descent. He wanted so badly to be out in the open air, to tuck his wings and dive at nearly 390 klicks an hour. 

“Commander Fox!” 

Fox nearly faltered in his flight, but grabbed a climbing rope that was hanging in one corner. “Fuck, Stone!” He glared down at his subordinate before letting go and landing in front of him. 

“No thanks, you’re not my type, sir.” Stone smirked before his face fell into a more serious expression. “It’s nearly two am, sir. You should be sleeping. Why are you still awake?” 

Fox frowned and shook his head. “I couldn’t sleep.” Rubbing the back of his neck, Fox carefully folded his wings along his back. “Something’s just...I have a bad feeling about tomorrow’s meetings.” 

“Then you need the sleep all the more,” Stone’s voice was firm but warm, as he put his hand on Fox’s shoulder. “The threat to the senators will be taken care of. The men won’t let anything happen to Senator Chuchi, and i’m fairly sure a certain Jedi would be rather upset if someone harmed his wife.” 

“Stone,” Fox warned, knowing full well that every corrie had seen or overheard Anakin and Pademe’s conversation. It was a poorly kept secret but one that the Marshall commander did not want to spread nonetheless. There was a reason for their privacy and Fox would keep it. 

“The point is, Fox, you don’t have to work yourself ragged. Your brothers are here to help you. If you take too much on your shoulders and you’ll break your back and your wings.” 

Fox wanted to argue, wanted to fight to continue to work and plan, but it wasn’t often that Stone’s face softened into the one that he was using now. He was like his name implied, stone faced and unmoving, but he was also incredibly caring under it all. He was an annoying vod’ika sometimes when he put that stonewall personality toward Fox, but if he didn’t; Fox would have broken long before then. 

“I’m...fine. I’ll fresh up and go to bed. I won’t have to get up early if i shower now.” Fox couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of pride at the smile that Stone gave him. 

“All right sir. I’ll keep you to it.” With that, Stone turned and left Fox alone in the training room. 

Giving his wings one more full stretch and a quick fluff of the feathers running up and down his spine before he kept his word. Fox remembered the one time in his short life he was able to have a full actual water shower; it was after Geonosis. His batch had been so covered in sand and blood; so much blood; that the Jedi who was looking over them detoured to get them clean. She was a kind Torgruta and fussed over them in a way that Fox would later discover matched the manner of a mother tooka. He wished for an actual hydro now, but the sonic was quicker. 

The sensation of the vibrations on his sensitive feathers was still, after almost twelve years, so disturbing. He could feel all the muscles attached to his feathers quiver and shake even after it was over. It was like being caught up in a horrible wind storm on Kamino. Fox shoved those thoughts from his mind. Stone was right, he needed rest, and now that he was clean he could feel sleep pulling at his mind. 

The morning had been controlled chaos for the Corrie Guard, and no one in the Senate knew it. But that was how Fox preferred days when meetings and various dignitaries visited Coruscant. His previous anxiety hadn’t lessened any more with a surprisingly fitful sleep; with only a brief moment of a nightmare of falling with his brothers on Geonosis - it counted as fitful in Fox’s mind. Still the nagging ball of discomfort in his stomach would not stop. 

The Chancellor’s words that early dawn didn’t help either. 

“I expect everything to go smoothly, Marshal Commander,” he had said with that sickly oily feeling creeping into Fox’s mind. “You are to follow your Orders and not Interfere, are we clear?” 

“Sir, yes sir.” Fox had replied as expected, the oily feeling disappearing for the most part. Little gods and goddesses he hated that man. 

And so, Fox stood at attention at the landing pad as another Senator and Dignitary left for the small holiday the Senate had afforded themselves. Frankly he was glad they were leaving. They had been rather rude to him while he was waiting for them to finish their brief with the Chancellor. It also meant that he was one more meeting closer to seeing Riyo again. 

Hound had sent a message that he enjoyed being stationed with her during her morning committee meeting. If it had been a comm, Fox was fairly certain the sergeant would be as giddy as he was in his message. Riyo had that effect on his men. 

Fox found himself smiling as he spun on his heel to enter the building again. Hound would be escorting her to the Chancellor’s office; and then Fox would have a three minute walk to the landing pad to have her company before she left on a short trip. She would return in a day, and hopefully by then Fox and his men will have had a firmer grasp on who it was that sent the threatening message. He flicked his eyes to his HUD and examined some of the evidence again that they were able to piece together. 

Although the note had been written in Pantoran, it was not such an elusive planet or language to learn. The use of it in a threat meant that it was specific to the Pantoran Senator. It could very well be from an unhappy Pantoran, someone who was perhaps a sympathizer to the separatists. It was an angle to investigate. 

He quickly sent a message to the investigative team as he arrived at the Chancellor’s suite, Hound and Senator Chuchi just turning the corner together, chatting pleasantly. 

“Commander,” Hound said, nodding his head. “And this is where I leave you, madam Senator.” 

“Your company was greatly appreciated today Hound. I’ll have to make sure to get a treat for Grizzer while I’m out.” Riyo smiled sweetly at Hound and turned to Fox. “It’s a pleasure, Commander Fox.” She bowed her head, her smile lighting her eyes and a flutter in Fox’s heart. 

“I think Grizz will appreciate that. Sir,” Hound saluted. 

“Thank you, Sergeant. Dismissed.” Fox focused on his duty and turned to Senator Chuchi. “This way. The Chancellor is waiting for you.” 

The Senator nodded, and Fox turned and led her the short distance to the Chancellor’s door. A quick knock was all that was needed to alert the Chancellor. 

“Ah, prompt as always, Commander,” he said as the door opened and Fox escorted Riyo inside of the office. 

“Is there anything else you need, sir?” Fox stood at parade rest, watching Riyo as she walked forward; glad for his helmet. 

“No, no. That is all.” Chancellor Palpatine dismissed him and then turned to Riyo. “Please, have a seat.” 

Fox turned back and walked through the door, stationing himself across the hall while two Senate Guards were standing on either side of the door. He wasn’t sure how long the meeting would take, the others were not very long; so Fox kept alert even as he read the investigative reports. There were a few more promising leads, and so far the security details had seen nothing worrisome or out of the ordinary. Still, the uncomfortable sensation in his gut worried Fox. 

He looked up when the door opened and Riyo walked out, smiling politely. “Thank you again, Chancellor. Have a pleasant Holiday.” 

“You as well, Senator Chuchi.” 

Fox stepped forward, nodding to Chancellor Palpatine, as he smiled behind his helmet at Riyo. “Are you all set, Senator?” 

“Yes, thank you Commander Fox. I’m sure you have a busy schedule as well.” 

Fox smiled as he walked with Riyo, his steps carefully measured for her shorter stature. “Where will you be traveling for Holiday?” 

“Oh, not far. It’s too short of a holiday to return home, Senator Organa invited Senator Amidala and myself to Alderaan to continue our committee work.” Riyo smiled. “It’s closer to Coruscant for both Pademe and myself, and I’m excited to get off planet, even for a little while.” 

Fox laughed softly. “I’ve heard it’s quite beautiful there. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.” 

“I’ll bring you a souvenir.” Riyo smiled at him, as if she hadn’t just offered to give him something so precious. 

“I…Senator that isn’t necessary,” He started, stumbling over his words before she rose a hand politely as they entered the lift. 

“Fox, I want to. For everything you and your brothers have been doing; looking out for Kida and I; I want to thank you somehow.” Riyo smiled warmly at him. “You’re a good man, Fox. I...I appreciate our friendship so much and I want to show it to you.” 

Fox’s heart did another unknown but not unpleasant flutter. He let his posture sag, pushing his helmet up just a bit to show his face, smiling back at her, letting his bucket sit at an angle on his head. “Thank you, Riyo. Sometimes I wonder what I did to deserve someone like you.” 

Riyo’s smile was brilliant and there was something in her look that made Fox want to press a kiss to her lips. _Haar’chak_ he was completely hopeless. He pulled his helmet back down to hide the blush that was creeping up his neck and to his cheeks. 

“Can...I give you something in return?” he asked, his throat a little thick, as she laughed softly. 

“I don’t think I could stop you.” 

A voice inside his head that sounded far too much like his trainers back on Kamino told him to stop; he was going too deep, he would be lost and never return. Fox ignored it in favor of gently pressing his forehead against hers a gentle hand on her shoulder, exhaling and closing his eyes. He heard and felt Riyo give a small inhale before relaxing. He pulled back just in time to hear the lift chime their floor. 

“It’s a way we greet our brothers, people we care about, and also how we wish them luck and safe travels.” Fox rushed in his explanation, watching as Riyo was blushing just a bit. It wasn’t exactly a lie; but not the whole truth. 

“Thank you, Fox, for sharing that with me. I’m honored.” Riyo’s voice was soft, but with a weight that left something behind that Fox wanted to examine more. 

“You’re welcome. This way, Senator.” He said softly, offering his arm to her as he had before weeks prior. 

The walk up the small flight of stairs to the roof and landing pad was far too short; and Fox felt something uncomfortable build in his chest. The feeling of wrongness returned. A pale human man stood near the open shuttle door. He was smiling. 

Fox didn’t want to let Riyo go. 

He walked toward the edge of the pad with Riyo on his arm, his shoulders tensing. There was something wrong, but he could see nothing. 

“Senator,” the man addressed Riyo as Fox finally, regretfully, let go of her arm. “You have a very busy schedule, let’s not delay.” 

“Of course. Thank you Commander Fox.” Riyo smiled at him and joined the man to continue walking toward the idling shuttle. 

Anxiety only built in Fox’s chest before he finally saw it. A hand, just on the inside of the open door of the shuttle, and a wet looking puddle. The ball in Fox’s chest burst. 

“RIYO!” Fox bolted in a full out sprint toward the shuttle, just as the man grabbed around the Pantoran Senator’s neck and pulled a vibroblade from a sheath. “All Units! Assassin on the Launch pad!” he ordered into his comm. 

The man slipped the blade under Riyo’s chin and pulled her away, snarling at Fox as he barreled toward them. Fox grinned as he saw Riyo’s shocked face morph into one of complete anger as she lifted her foot and brought down a heeled boot right onto his toes. 

The distraction was all Fox needed. As soon as he let go of Riyo in shock, he tackled the attempted assassin, skidding to a stop near the edge of the pad. The vibroblade fell spinning and glinting in the sun hundreds of feet below. 

A knee to the gut caught Fox off guard and he grunted, pulling up to try and punch the assassin who would dare touch his Riyo. Unfortunately the shock of the attack had worn off, and the attacker knew how to fight. 

Fox was thrown off with a well placed jab to his unprotected armpit. He rolled and felt his entire back size up as he instinctively tried to flair his wings to keep balance. Damn the chancellor and the senators who clipped him! 

He snarled and stood, bracing as the attacker flew at him, swinging and jabbing at the weak points of his armor. Knees, ankles, shoulders, all the joints that needed to be mobile he was striking at. Any time Fox returned his own strikes, he would be pushed back by an attack to a vulnerable elbow or armpit. 

The assassin continued to press, advancing even as he took punches to get to the openings that Fox had to leave. He Had to protect Riyo. 

Fox gave a war cry and pushed through the pain, starting to fight back, stalling the push of his opponent. He kept his arms closer to his body, striking left and right jabs like a serpent; quick and precise. 

His punch was caught and the assailant wrapped his arm under his elbow and jammed up, almost causing the bone to break and hyperextend, were it not for the protective armor on the outside of his elbow. Fox gave a sharp howl before he was forced to move forward with the momentum of the assassin pushing his locked arm. 

“Fox! Look out!” Riyo’s voice barely cut through the haze of the fight; just enough for Fox’s heel to catch the edge of the launch pad as the assassin let go of his arm; pushing hard. 

Fox gasped and flailed, arms wide as he watched a sidekick land in his chest; pushing him over the edge of the building. 

The Marshall Commander knew exactly how tall the Senate tower was. It was 1,180 meters. The fall, though, would take Fox far beyond that. The senate district had decided that everyone in any layer of Coruscant’s city should be able to look up to the height of it’s democratic glory. 

The rush of the air across his armor brought back flashes of Geonosis, the screams of his brothers as they fell and could not fly with him to safety. The guilt of watching his men, his brothers, his family die in the first battle so horribly while he was only able to save one or two; that he had to choose; never felt so heavy. 

The urge to accept his fate was so strong, even as he watched the launch pad fade away above him. He deserved it. 

Until a piercing scream of ‘FOX!’ cut through it like a lightsaber. He could not abandon Riyo. 

Elbow still excruciating he grabbed the emergency latches for his breastplate on his shoulders and pulled them. The snap and pop of plastisteel was barely heard over the rushing of the air and the sudden relief of his wings opening. 

Rolling from his back to his front, Fox tucked his wings and controlled his dive. Barely a twitch of his wings sent the downward momentum changing and he rocketed up. The beating of his wings as he climbed back up; crimson feathers caressing the air and sending him higher. He turned his head as he passed the landing pad, spotting Riyo scrambling away from the assassin. 

He snarled and rolled as he climbed, his aim now at the back of the bastard who dared try and attack the woman he cared for. Wings tucked once again and Fox dropped like a stone from a height of nearly 100 meters above the launch pad. 

His HUD focused on the target, even as his eyes flicked to Riyo’s. He could see her as clear as day. Fear staring at the assassin before noticing him; fear turning to shock and maybe something else. Fox didn’t have time to examine that. 

He opened his wings enough to check his dive as his hands snapped out colliding with the man and sending them both sliding across the platform. A strong beat from his wings checked the motion, even as Fox wrestled the man’s hands behind his back. 

“You,” he snarled, wings arched over his back. “Are under arrest for assault on Senator Riyo Chuchi!” The cuffs snapped pleasantly over the man’s wrists. 

The door slammed open as five of his men rushed out, and Fox, shaking from the adrenaline coursing through his veins, let them usher him off the man to lift him. 

He noticed that the man’s one arm was hanging awkwardly, and half of his face was so badly scraped from the assault that it would be a surprise he wouldn’t have to have surgery. Fox couldn’t have cared less. His knees shook and his heart raced, he hadn’t yet decided if it was a good feeling or a bad one. He pulled his helmet off to breathe. 

“Fox!” Riyo’s voice squeaked with emotion and Fox turned to see her running to him. 

He caught her just as they both fell to their knees. Why were his hands shaking so much? He pulled her to his chest and wrapped his wings protectively around her. 

Her gold eyes stared at him, then at his wings, pulling her hands up to wrap around his neck. 

The wind kicked up and Fox lowered his wings; spotting the camera droids hovering and watching them. He glared at them before wrapping his wings around them both, a crimson shield from prying eyes.


End file.
